A classical Schmidt telescope, also referred to as Schmidt camera, is a catadioptric astronomical telescope or camera designed to provide a relatively wide field of view while reducing aberrations in comparison with other telescopes. It is named for its inventor Bernhard Schmidt, who wrote of its properties in 1931 in “Ein lichtstarkes komafreies Spiegelsystem,” Central-Zeitung für Optik and Mechanik 52.2 (1931), pp. 25-26. A detailed description of a flat field Schmidt telescope can be found in “Recent Advances in Optics,” by E. H. Linfoot, Oxford University Press, 1955. Modern flat field Schmidt telescopes are typically used as survey instruments to facilitate coverage of a relatively large area of the sky.
Photographing celestial bodies introduces unique challenges. Many known telescopes require long exposure times, increasing the likelihood of blurring or motion effects during the exposure. Some known Schmidt telescopes focus the image within the housing of the telescope, providing little or no access to imaging components.